Former Chicago Firefighter Sentenced in Cocaine Case

Sung Jin Jeon sentenced to 17.5 years in federal prison, followed by 5 years of parole

A former Chicago firefighter fought tears and apologized to his friends and family as he was sentenced Wednesday to more than 17 years in federal prison for supplying cocaine to a drug trafficking network that served Urbana and Champaign.

"There is no way I could possibly apologize to all the people affected by my criminal act," Sung Jim Jeon said, according to the (Champaign) News-Gazette.  "I am sorry to let you down. Please forgive me."

Jeon, 39, pleaded guilty in December 2008 to conspiracy to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine, admitting that he conspired with two other men from Chicago to distribute the cocaine between 2004 and 2007.  He also pleaded guilty to money laundering.  Jeon accepted money from a co-conspirator, Olaitan Fowowe, and redirected the funds back to him, falsely claiming the checks were payroll checks.

At the time, Fowowe was serving a sentence at an Illinois Department of Corrections work release center in Chicago.

Judge Michael McCuskey directed that Jeon begin his prison sentence on Feb. 3, 2010.

 

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